VariJET is more than packaging · Pierre Hertzel · Business Manager · Schelling · Open House

At Koenig & Bauer Durst’s Open House in Radebeul, I speak with Pierre Hertzel from Schelling AG – the first company to install the variJET 106.

Let’s get one thing out of the way. If you look at the variJET as a “digital alternative to offset,” you’re already missing the point.

What Pierre explains—very clearly—is that this isn’t about moving short runs away from conventional production. It’s about doing things you couldn’t do before. And when you listen carefully, you realize that the real conversation isn’t about print at all. It’s about value.

He shares a case with a large confectionery brand. They didn’t ask for cheaper packaging. They asked for insight. They wanted to understand what happens in retail, store by store. The answer wasn’t price per sheet. It was variable data. Unique QR codes. Packaging as a data carrier.

That’s a different business.

And that’s why the usual discussions about cost don’t really apply. Because when a brand owner sees an opportunity to connect with customers, track behavior, or create something that stands out, the conversation changes. It becomes marketing. It becomes strategy.

Not print.

What I also like here is that Schelling doesn’t treat the variJET as a “folding carton machine,” even though that’s the label. They print what makes sense. Posters. Calendars. Promotional work. They test the limits. They explore.

That’s exactly what you should do with new technology.

Of course, it’s not perfect. It’s new. There are things to learn, things to improve. But honestly, that’s not the issue. The issue is whether you approach it with the right mindset.

Because if you install a machine like this and run it like an offset press, you’ve just made an expensive mistake.

Digital is not about efficiency. It’s about possibility.

Watch the interview with Pierre Hertzel. This is what it looks like when a customer doesn’t just buy technology, but actually uses it.